JULY 14, 2025

 “If you trust in yourself. . .and believe in your dreams. . .and follow your star. . . you'll still get beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren't so lazy.” 

― Terry Pratchett, The Wee Free Men

PSALM 13-16

 1Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent? Who may live on your holy mountain?2The one whose walk is blameless, who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from their heart;3whose tongue utters no slander, who does no wrong to a neighbor, and casts no slur on others; 4who despises a vile person but honors those who fear the Lord; who keeps an oath even when it hurts, and does not change their mind; 5who lends money to the poor without interest; who does not accept a bribe against the innocent. Whoever does these things will never be shaken.(15)

ACTS 18

1After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. 2There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered all Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see them, 3and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them. 4Every Sabbath he reasoned in the synagogue, trying to persuade Jews and Greeks.

JOURNAL 

Terry Pratchett’s words hit hard today: “If you trust in yourself...and believe in your dreams...and follow your star... you'll still get beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren't so lazy.”

It’s biting. But there’s truth in it.

Dreams, feelings, intentions—they're not enough. Faith alone, without action, is dead. And sometimes I act like simply wanting something badly is the same as being faithful or disciplined. It’s not.

That’s why Psalm 15 is both beautiful and deeply convicting. David lays it out plainly: the one who may dwell with God is the one whose walk is blameless, who does what is right, who speaks truth from the heart, and who keeps an oath even when it hurts.

It’s not about charisma or talent or feelings of calling—it’s about integrity. Quiet obedience. A kind of everyday faithfulness that refuses shortcuts, even when no one’s watching.

Paul lived this out. Yes, he was a bold preacher, a writer of epistles, a miracle-worker. But he was also a tentmaker. A laborer. He worked with his hands to make a living. Acts 18 makes that clear. He partnered with Aquila and Priscilla, not just in faith, but in business. He showed up for his job—then taught in the synagogues on the Sabbath.

And then 2 Thessalonians reminds me that this wasn’t just about survival—it was about example. Paul says, “We were not idle… we worked night and day… not because we didn’t have the right to help, but to model a life worth imitating.”

That strikes a nerve.

Because honestly, I can get lazy—not just in the obvious ways, but in my attitude toward the mundane. I want meaning and purpose, but I don’t always want to embrace the work that meaning requires. I want to matter, but I resist the grind.

But God sees even the grind. He numbers the hairs on my head (Luke 12:7). He says today has enough trouble of its own, so today is worth showing up for (Matthew 6:34).

So yes—working hard in the small things matters. Keeping an oath matters. Finishing the job matters.

I don’t want to be idle. I don’t want to dream and drift. I want to build. I want to sweat. I want to live with a rooted, working kind of faith.

So God—help me show up today. Not just in the big moments, but in the small, thankless ones. Help me carry joy into the tent-making, the table-clearing, the email-answering, the lawn-mowing. Help me believe that nothing is wasted when it’s done with love and honesty and for your glory.

And may I never confuse wishful thinking for holy obedience. Let me live the kind of life that will never be shaken.

6In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers and sisters, to keep away from every believer who is idle and disruptive and does not live according to the teaching^a you received from us. 7For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you, 8nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you. 9We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to offer ourselves as a model for you to imitate.

2 THESSALONIANS 3:6-9